Biman’s unending ‘bimar’

Biman just can't seem to stay out of negative headlines. After having raised eyebrows last week with reports of an unreasonable decision to purchase 10 Airbus planes and a mid-flight glitch in a plane that had carried the PM to Tokyo, the flag carrier is now reported to be sending about 100 officials to Saudi Arabia in the name of "assisting" Bangladeshi hajj pilgrims. According to sources, about Tk 8-10 crore will be spent for their 37-day stay in the kingdom. The lavish spending on something that Biman already has people on the ground to do for it has raised questions about the decision.

Reportedly, officials selected for the trip come from various departments. There are at least 33 from customer service, eight from the engineering and material management department, 28 from sales and marketing, two from administration, and so on. There are allegations that service rules have been violated while making the selections. The bigger question, of course, is whether such a large team is at all necessary. Biman's managing director tried to justify it by saying that there are a lot of services to be provided to pilgrims. But the airline already has a General Sales Agent (GSA) as well as country and station offices in Jeddah, Medina and Makkah that can provide those services. For example, the GSA is obligated to do all kinds of ticket-related work. Why are 28 sales and marketing officials going then? Even with the involvement of additional men, Biman has never been known for ensuring customer satisfaction pre- and post-hajj.

Why does it continue to send such teams then? Apparently, its staff see this as an excursion and a money-making opportunity. A Biman official will get a daily allowance of $220-$225 (around Tk 24,000) during this trip, in addition to other facilities. As a former director told Prothom Alo, "it is like an annual outing for them." It adds nothing substantive to the service provided by Biman. In reality, this is nothing but a wastage of public money. At a time when the government is struggling with a sheer dollar shortage and a protracted economic crisis, such trips by state officials are completely unacceptable.

We urge Biman to refrain from normalising this illogical move. Biman is already suffering from an unending "bimar" (affliction), with mismanagement and irregularities thwarting its progress. Let's not add to that now.